Chapter 31#

Afternoon.

After Zhao Rong and Fang Zhuoqun finished their business, they returned to the sanatorium to have lunch with Zhao Ming.

Fang Zhuoqun was not one to stay idle; he talked incessantly during the meal. From the stories of Zhao Rong’s youth that he had told Zhao Ming countless times, to the trivial yet interesting things he had encountered in recent years, and finally mentioning his upcoming marriage to his girlfriend.

When he talked about having Zhao Rong as his best man, Zhao Ming glanced at Zhao Rong and asked slowly, “Xiao Rong, do you plan to get married in the future?”

Zhao Rong was stunned.

He thought of the unresolved engagement with Lu Xingping and then thought about the future.

“I haven’t decided,” he said, looking down to take a mouthful of rice.

Zhao Ming didn’t ask further, and Fang Zhuoqun didn’t bring up the wedding again.

After lunch, Zhao Ming went for a nap, and Zhao Rong went out for a walk with Fang Zhuoqun in the small courtyard.

Winter was coming, and there was no telling when the first snow would fall.

A chilly wind blew against his face. Zhao Rong kicked a pebble by his feet and heard Fang Zhuoqun’s voice: “Zhao Rong.”

“It creeps me out when you call me by my name so solemnly.”

“…” Fang Zhuoqun gave him a white look, but his expression then paused. “I actually didn’t plan on bringing it up again; I wanted this matter to end tacitly like this. But just now at lunch, when your mom asked if you still planned to get married and you said you hadn’t decided…”

“Do you… really not like Qiao Nanqi anymore?”

Zhao Rong kicked the pebble by his feet with force.

He didn’t evade the question but thought about it seriously. Just like he had answered Zhao Ming earlier, he said honestly, “Rather than saying I don’t like him, I should say I don’t want to like him anymore.”

Seeing Fang Zhuoqun’s momentarily hesitant expression, he chuckled. “Don’t overthink it.”

“I’ve just been foolish for so many years and suddenly realized that sometimes there’s a clear line between ideal and reality, and people change. I’m awake now and don’t want to make more mistakes, while he has never been ‘asleep.’ The current me and the current Qiao Nanqi are not a good match.”

If “love” could really be picked up and put down at will, how could there be so many obsessions buried in the endless years?

He had liked Qiao Nanqi for so many years that the feeling had even seeped into his bones.

But it was precisely because it had seeped into his bones that he knew exactly how to scrape it off, bit by bit, step by step.

He had been terminally ill for so many years and had become his own best doctor.

The autumn wind made his hands slightly cold. He raised them, blowing hot air and rubbing them together, saying without any avoidance, “Can you stop always testing me with those awkward questions? There’s nothing that can’t be said—broken up, ended, no possibility… Ask if you want to, don’t mention it if you don’t. Am I the kind of person who evades things?”

Fang Zhuoqun nodded. “Exactly. In the eleventh grade, you lost first place in a monthly exam because you forgot to write your name and were docked points. You felt so ashamed you absolutely wouldn’t let me mention it to your mom.”

Zhao Rong: “…Why do you have to have a mouth?”

“…Anyway, since you’ve made up your mind this time, what do you plan to do after you’ve taken back all those assets? Start a company and do it yourself?”

Fang Zhuoqun raised his hand and tossed a bottle of mineral water to Zhao Rong.

Zhao Rong caught it but didn’t drink. He played with it casually in his hand and said, “I can’t do that, and I have no one to work for me.”

The people he knew were either those playboys or those who all followed Qiao Nanqi’s lead. Those people were all chosen ones—after all, they were the male lead’s friends in this world—but who would help him?

Starting from zero isn’t easy.

What’s more…

“My health hasn’t been good these past few years; I can’t handle the strain anymore.”

“Student Zhao, you’ve finally remembered you have a body to take care of. Rare, rare indeed.”

Zhao Rong smiled.

Usually at a time like this, he would always bicker with Fang Zhuoqun. But he was indeed in the wrong about this matter, so he remained silent.

He had indeed been foolish before, doing meaningless things and ending up with poor health at a young age.

In his previous life, Zhao Rong died of a terminal illness. He knew what kind of time was wasted in the hospital. Before, his eyes were only on Qiao Nanqi, and he felt everything was worth it. Now those things had nothing to do with him, and there was no need for him to neglect his own body and strive for something.

He put his hands in his pockets and slowly strolled down the path covered in fallen leaves, continuing: “I’ve been preparing these past few days, learning some things. When everything is settled, I want to leave Yang City, go to a new place, invest in entertainment and tourism, and then use the rotating funds to set up a foundation and an orphanage, and settle there permanently.”

“Sounds quite fulfilling,” Fang Zhuoqun suddenly remembered something and stopped walking. “Wait, then why are you still keeping one investment in Yang City?”

“You mean that bar?”

“Yes. You’re selling off everything else, but that one, you just transferred it back under your name.”

This reminded Zhao Rong.

He took out his phone, sent the name of the bar to Liu Shun, and then answered Fang Zhuoqun: “Because it will be useful in a couple of days.”

Qiao Nanqi slowly inserted the somewhat rusty key into the keyhole.

The old lock had endured countless years of wind, sun, autumn wind, and frost. When it turned, it made an obscure metallic sound.

Not having been here for a long time, he even momentarily forgot which direction to turn it, twisting it fruitlessly a few times before realizing he had turned it the wrong way.

In his movements, Qiao Nanqi’s fingertips brushed against the rust on the door handle.

He frowned, suddenly feeling a bit irritable.

He wasn’t usually a short-tempered person, but at this moment, Qiao Nanqi just felt like losing his temper for no reason.

He should have just turned it the other way to open the door or wiped his fingertips first, but his frown grew tighter and tighter. He just held the key in one hand and the door handle in the other, motionless.

Until Xiao Wu’s tentative inquiry came from behind: “…Sir?”

Only then did Qiao Nanqi steady his breathing and open the door of this old house on Changxi Road that had been unoccupied for a long time.

A puff of dust hit him in the face.

The light from outside streamed into the house through the windows and the open door. All the furniture inside was covered with dust-proof cloth, looking all white at first glance.

Dusty memories flooded into Qiao Nanqi’s mind along with the familiar scene before him.

This was his residence during his youth, a place he had never returned to since becoming an adult. Compared to the other properties Qiao Nanqi now owned, it wasn’t even considered a suitable residence anymore. But he still chose this place first because it held decent memories of his youth. Perhaps… it would allow him to think about Zhao Rong a bit less.

Xiao Wu had already started arranging for people to tidy up. Qiao Nanqi stood at the door, watching figures come and go, in and out.

He didn’t say anything, just stood there, seemingly reminiscing.

He didn’t keep staring into the house, just took a general look around, and then his gaze landed in the distance outside the old courtyard, unsure which part of the street corner in the distance he was looking at.

But just as he stood there, Xiao Wu and the others felt immense pressure and dared not be negligent in the slightest.

After a while, Xiao Wu stepped forward and asked him, “Sir, how about we clean out one room first for you to rest?”

Qiao Nanqi shook his head.

He glanced at the sky and said something irrelevant: “It’s still quite early; I’ll go take a look.”

Before Xiao Wu could react, their President had already adjusted his trench coat, hands in his pockets, and stepped over the fallen leaves and dead branches in the courtyard, walking toward the end of the street diagonally opposite the old house.

The end of the street was overgrown with weeds, and the telephone poles on both sides were covered with vulgar advertisements. The sidewalk was still in the style of floor tiles from ten years ago, with many weeds sprouting from the gaps between tiles. Aside from what seemed to be a cat or dog shelter left by some kind-hearted person behind the weeds, there was nothing there.

It was unclear what Young Master Qiao was going to do.

But Mr. Qiao’s abnormal behavior had been so frequent these past few days that Xiao Wu was almost getting used to it.

He just took a look at Qiao Nanqi’s receding back and then immediately withdrew his gaze to continue his work.

On the other side, Qiao Nanqi crossed the not-so-wide road and walked to the end of the street diagonally opposite the old house.

He stepped into the weed thicket within the green belt and stood before the cat shelter deep inside.

The cat shelter was still the same cat shelter, only with many more traces of wind and sun.

But inside the cat shelter, there was nothing left.

…Where was the cat?

Qiao Nanqi was dazed, momentarily lost in thought.

During the years he lived on Changxi Road, the most vivid impression he had was of these stray cats outside his house.

At that time, he had just found out those things Qiao Anqing hadn’t told him and had completely broken with He Nan. His wings were not yet fully fledged, and he had moved into this property Qiao Anqing had bought many years ago.

Living alone.

He hadn’t brought a single servant from the Qiao family, only occasionally calling housekeepers to come and clean.

This litter of stray cats was his rare “friend.”

Initially, there seemed to be only one.

One time when Qiao Nanqi returned home from school, that thin stray cat even followed him for a stretch. It was clearly one that recognized people and was willing to follow someone home.

Qiao Nanqi had grown up with the two cats Qiao Anqing raised since he was a child and was quite patient with such small things. He had even bought canned food to feed it a few times. But in the end, he didn’t bring it home.

At that time, he had nightmares almost every night, and all he thought about all day was his resentment and hatred for He Nan. He couldn’t even take care of himself; how could he possibly take care of a stray cat? Occasionally remembering and feeding it a few times was the most he could do.

Back then, he thought that maybe this little stray cat would one day suddenly meet with an accident, or one day be taken home by another kind-hearted person, or move to a new place and no longer appear… After all, it was an unwanted thing, and anything was possible—just like him.

But one day, it seemed to be a similarly idle and cool autumn day, some kind-hearted person set up a cat shelter in this place. That person didn’t take the cat away but just put some things at the end of the street, which counted as a temporary free home for that stray cat.

Changxi Road was full of old houses with few residents. The cat was left alone and occasionally fed by others. Staying like this, it actually managed to survive a whole year in peace.

The following spring, there were actually more stray cats in this place. That stray cat found a mate and even had a litter of kittens.

No longer lonely, no longer drifting, yet free.

When Qiao Nanqi went out, he would often see one or two wandering by the roadside.

The cat still recognized him and would sometimes come up to rub against his ankles and meow a few times, asking for a snack.

He would just take a few looks, and his depressed mood would ease a bit.

Later, he moved away and never returned. Those years on Changxi Road were his most vulnerable time. He didn’t want to mention it to anyone, and he had never told anyone about this matter, but he always remembered it very clearly.

Years later today, he looked over here from his doorstep just now and vaguely saw the cat shelter behind the weeds. In an instant, the thought of coming over to take a look surged up.

If this litter of stray cats were still there, he could also bring them home.

He was, after all, no longer the child who couldn’t take care of himself back then. And with more life in the house, he might… also think about Zhao Rong a bit less.

Unexpectedly, this cat shelter was so completely empty.

The earliest stray cat was not young. According to the time, even if no accident occurred, it should be about time for its natural end.

Were the other cats taken away by someone? Or did some accident happen? Or did they move somewhere?

Forget it.

He dismissed the thought.

But before Qiao Nanqi could turn and leave, as he withdrew his gaze, his peripheral vision caught a sticky note attached with waterproof transparent tape to the edge of the cat shelter.

The tape was very new, with only the edges slightly curled, looking like it hadn’t been there for long.

There seemed to be writing on the sticky note.

Qiao Nanqi was stunned.

He bent down and took a careful look.

The content on the paper was simple, roughly saying that this litter of stray cats had been taken away. If other people who would come to feed the cats saw it, they shouldn’t worry. They might have missed some that weren’t home when they were taken. If anyone still saw scattered kittens, they could contact them.

The signature was a pet shop.

A phone number was written, and an address was marked.

Qiao Nanqi raised his hand and slowly tore the sticky note off.